The hybrid-electric drives offer potential benefits over conventional mechanical drives in terms of reduced fuel consumption, reduced emissions, and the utilization of smaller engines. For a military vehicle, e.g., tank, this can provide a significant advantage since with lower fuel requirements, the military vehicle will be able to travel further to either reach a target or be able to flee to safety. Also, the current weight of some military vehicles is a problem. Currently, tanks like the Abrams, M1 and others are about sixty (60) tons in weight. There are tremendous advantages with regard to mobility in combat if the military vehicle can be one-half or one-third of the weight of a current military vehicle.
A major problem with current military vehicles, e.g., tanks, which utilize tracks or drive belts, is that during combat, these tracks or drive belts can be dislodged. This renders the military vehicle a sitting target due to the fact that the tank is now completely immobilized. The operators of the tank then have to flee and in the process expose themselves to enemy fire and possible capture. This “mobility kill” is a significant problem for our armed forces that needs to be addressed.
Also, present day track systems utilized in tanks have problems regarding how to drive such tracks with the entrained wheels, how to maintain structural integrity of the track and wheels, how to encompass the track in lateral alignment with the wheels when the wheels are subjected to large obstacles in the road, how to provide long life for the track and wheels, how to accommodate debris ingested between the track and belt while maintaining the driving relationship therebetween without damaging either, how to preclude the track from coming off the wheels, how to brake the track and wheel systems, how to preclude the track from coming off of the wheels during braking, and how to maintain proper belt tension during braking and turning.
Current positive drive belt systems usually have only one wheel positively engaged with the belt causing premature wear when braking occurs. Furthermore, known positive drive belt systems provide insufficient recoil to allow foreign material to escape from the belt system.
In addition, track driven systems are “hard” riding. Specifically, track driven systems lack suspension systems entirely or have primitive suspension systems resulting in a rough ride.
The present invention is directed to overcome one or more of the problems as set forth above.